Videoconference calls have become a staple of office collaboration in the remote work environment. There are a number of established players in the industry that provide the same basic functions. Whether one uses Zoom, GoToMeeting, Microsoft® Teams, Google Meet, Cisco Webex, or something else, the platform is going to have video and audio that can be turned off/muted, some sort of chat feature, and typically a hand-raising tool to alert the group that one wishes to chime in.
While these software applications are designed to mimic the experience of an in-person meeting, it’s clear that present technology—advanced though it may be—is by no means a perfect replacement for the real thing. In some cases, videoconferencing tools offer features that are lacking compared with in-person meetings.
Falling Short of an In-person Experience
The chat feature is a great example, and it’s not the only one. Videoconferencing can be less effective than in-person interactions in other areas, as well. Bad connections, the inability to get the full body language picture, and various distractions are just some examples.
In short, videoconferencing has pros and cons relative to in-person meetings, but in general, we can say it’s sufficiently different—in both bad and good ways—to require its own rules of etiquette.
Communicating Rules of Videoconferencing Etiquette
Those who haven’t used videoconferencing tools their entire careers might be oblivious to what seem like obvious rules to those digital natives who’ve used such tools for years in both their professional and their personal lives. To keep everyone on the same page, companies should provide some basic training—even a simple FAQ or Q&A document—to help staff understand the expected etiquette when using videoconferencing tools.
And just because the world has entered its third year of the pandemic doesn’t mean it’s too late to spend time on video call training. With new variants and renewed shutdowns and restrictions becoming a feature of everyday life, the need for these skills will not diminish anytime soon.
Even after the pandemic subsides, the shift to remote and hybrid work seems to be a permanent fixture, meaning video calls are likely to be a more fundamental part of office life. On top of that, the fact that companies have had over 2 years to collect examples of how not to behave on video calls could mean the timing is just right for an etiquette reset. In a follow-up post, we’ll discuss some specific etiquette rules for videoconference calls.
Lin Grensing-Pophal is a Contributing Editor at HR Daily Advisor.